It's obvious that you need us to think you are smart and can read 5 damned impressive titles at once (you can't of course - attention is sequential). The only thing that you have impressed me with is your selfishness. And the books had diagrams! Wow, you will never see that in a ebook, such technological wizardry will probably be forever beyond us! Imagine that, a diagram, a flat static diagram, how illuminating, how instructive... how archaic.

My point is about the environment, not your narcissism. Maybe you could read 5 or 6 "books" on that - simultaneously of course. Universe in a Nutshell indeed. I am pretty sure they did not mean for you to take the title literally. Maybe your comprehension would increase if you read them sequentially...

And yes it is painfully obvious that there is "no freaking way" that you will think of others, so your final sentence was unnecessary.

Paper is immoral. Someday, perhaps soon, the majority of people will accept this, not you of course.

I guess we would have to call him/her the "unknown troll".

We don't know with certainty how many people how many people Blackwater mercenaries have killed, but I do think that 20 is a very low number and therefore silly.

What I do know. Since this occupation is illegal, immoral and based on a lie; one death is too many.

Did waterboarding really work on Abu Zubaydah? Don't know, don't care. It's like asking Did molesting his children really work on Abu Zubaydah? or Did shooting his mother really work on Abu Zubaydah?

Jesus they even tortured him after he started talking! What is wrong with you America? Have you completely lost any sense of decency? Why don't Americans care about this issue? Why are you so afraid and what exactly are you afraid of?

The question should not be (and shame on Salon for framing it that way), does torture work? Personally I think it probably does. But what happens when you torture innocent people like Mahar Arar? How can you say to your many many enemies that they should not torture your people? Even the NAZI's, who are supposedly the gold standard for evil, did not, as a rule, torture their prisoners.

I don't buy the idea, the lie for children actually, that there was a time in the past when America was "good", but I would say that there not a time when America was actually "evil", at least not until 9/11 and the galloping insanity and hatred that it produced.

This is the smallest of victories. It's kind of like you got Hitler to postpone the invasion of Poland - for a month.

Reid's actions are obviously collusion with the worst elements of the bush/cheney junta and the permanent government in America.

All the blogs in all the world will not stop these people for they stop at nothing. If Reid won't cooperate, buy him, blackmail him, whatever it takes. If Pelosi is a problem tap her phone. I know a lot of people are in denial about the true state of government in America, but it seems obvious to me at least that the Republicans and the Democrats are exactly the same.

I am glad that Dodd is standing up on his hind legs, but I will be shocked if bush does not get his FISA the way he wants it, when he wants it.

The dems won't stop bush's FISA bill because if there was a real investigation into government spying, it would reveal that your government has been spying on you for decades, ever since it had the technical ability to do so. Yesterday, it was to catch the commies, today, it's the terrorists, it's all the same game - power and social control.

About my earlier post where I denigrated the importance of this great victory.

I don't spend my time raining on people's parade, and like most of the posters I was very happy to see someone, anyone, finally standing up to these bastards.

My point was that for 6 years, those of us who are against, torture, illegal invasions, the creation of near police state (and the apparent plan for a real one), etc, have not been exactly winning the game. To continue with the game analogy, I would say that it is still Bush 400, good guys, 1.

So yes, this is a victory, but it is not enough. It remains to be seen if others like Nancy Pelosi will get the message and stand in front of that tank.

I think that that will not happen, and I am sorry for that thought, because it means terrible things for humanity.

As for "giving up", I have never argued for that. I will never do that, and neither should anyone reading this. We must fight them at every opportunity. Fight! Fight! Fight!

So cheer on Dodd, and piss on Pelosi, but don't pretend that this is D-day, it is not. Perhaps the Dieppe raid would be a better analogy http://www.wwii.ca/page53.html

It was not exactly the end for Herr Hitler, but it was the beginning.

We have a long battle ahead. Sauron is still strong.